NFL Franchises That Have Never Won Super Bowl

With a win Sunday against the Patriots, the Atlanta Falcons can remove themselves from the list of 13 NFL franchises that has never won the Super Bowl.

Some teams on this list -- like the Browns, Eagles and Lions -- have won NFL championships, but not in the Super Bowl era. Some have come closer than others as the Bills and Vikings each reached the Super Bowl four times, while others -- like the Lions -- have never made it to the big stage.

Here's a closer look at the fortunes of these 13 teams:

Arizona Cardinals

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Coming off a victory against the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship, the Arizona Cardinals punched their ticket to the 2008 Super Bowl. It was the team’s first-ever Super Bowl appearance. The Cardinals slogan for the season was “Shock The World!” However the Cardinals could not pull off the victory, and fell to the Steelers 27-23.

This season, the Falcons make their first return to the Super Bowl since 1999 under coach Dan Reeves when they upset Minnesota in the NFC championship game. The Broncos then defeated the Falcons 34-19 in Super Bowl XXXIII to repeat as champions. The Falcons have another chance to win their first Super Bowl as they take on the New England Patriots in Houston.

They won the AFC championship four consecutive seasons but lost in the Super Bowl to the Giants, Redskins and then twice to the Cowboys. The 20-19 loss to the Giants in Super Bowl XXV when Scott Norwood missed a 47-yard field goal at the end of the game remains the most haunting loss.

The Panthers have reached the Super Bowl twice. They lost to New England 32-29 in Super Bowl XXXVIII. Then after a 15-1 record in 2015, they headed to Super Bowl 50 to take on Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos. In Manning's last game, Carolina fell short 24-10.

The Bengals made it to the Super Bowl twice only to come up short against the 49ers twice. In Super Bowl XXIII, Joe Montana took the 49ers on an 11-play, 92-yard drive for the winning touchdown in a 20-16 win. In 2002, the Browns finished 9–7, and due to multiple tiebreakers, made the playoffs for the first time since 1994. Facing Pittsburgh in the first round, the Browns led 33–21 with five minutes to go, but ultimately lost 36–33. Their largest lead in the game was 17 points—they led 24–7 in the third quarter; after that, the Steelers outscored them 29–9.

From 1965 to 1995, they made the playoffs 14 times, but did not win another championship or appear in the Super Bowl. The Browns have only had two winning seasons (2002 and 2007), one playoff appearance (2002) and no playoff wins.

Despite winning four NFL championships, the last time the Lions were on top was 1957, giving the club the second-longest championship drought behind the Arizona Cardinals. The Detroit Lions are the only NFC team to have not yet played in the Super Bowl.

While the expansion team struggled in the 2000s, it clinched its first playoff berth during the 2011 season as AFC South champions. The Texans have gone on to win the AFC South in 2012, 2015, and 2016, but remain the only NFL franchise to have never played in a conference championship game.

The Jaguars reached the AFC championship game twice under coach Tom Coughlin. In 1996, in just the team's second season, the Jaguars won at Buffalo in the wild-card round and at Denver in the divisional round before losing at New England in the AFC title game. In 1999, the Jaguars put together a league-best 14-2 regular-season record to clinch the No. 1 seed in the AFC. After defeating the Miami Dolphins in the divisional round, the Jaguars' bid for a Super Bowl title came to an end with 33-14 home loss to the Titans, the only team to beat them that season.

Since the league’s merger with the American Football League, the Vikings have qualified for the playoffs 26 times. That is the third-most in the NFL. Of the 26 playoff appearances, four ended in the Super Bowl. However the team has yet to come away Super Bowl champions with loss to the Chiefs in Super Bowl IV, Dolphins in Super Bowl VIII, Steelers in Super Bowl IX and Raiders in Super Bowl XI.

The Eagles have made it to the Super Bowl twice. Coach Dick Vermeil took them to Super Bowl XV where they lost to the Raiders 27-10. Under Andy Reid, they lost Super Bowl XXXIX to the New England Patriots 24-21 win in Jacksonville.

The 1994 season was one where the Chargers saw their first and, so far, only Super Bowl appearance. Turning in an 11-5 regular season record, the Chargers won the AFC championship game in Pittsburgh. But they were blown out 49-26 in Super Bowl XXIX against a San Francisco 49ers team that was led by Steve Young and Jerry Rice.

In 1999 the Tennessee Titans did not lose a home game all season and finished 13-3. The Titans won their first playoff game over the Buffalo Bills and went on to beat Indianapolis Colts in Indianapolis, and then defeated the Jaguars in Jacksonville in the AFC championship game earning a trip to Super Bowl XXXIV, where they lost to the St. Louis Rams 23-16.